Bourbon-Glazed Turkey Gizzards with Mushrooms and Onion

Turkey gizzards pressure-cooked tender, browned with bacon, mushrooms and onion, and finished in a sticky bourbon and brown-sugar glaze.

Untested and original: this recipe was composed for the Offal dive. No established bourbon-glazed gizzard recipe could be found in any source consulted, so this joins a proven method (pressure-cooked, then pan-browned gizzards with mushrooms and onion) to a standard bourbon pan glaze. Treat the glaze quantities as a first draft.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds turkey gizzards, trimmed of the tough tendon and silverskin
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 slices bacon, cut in 1-inch pieces
• 1 onion, sliced
• 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced

Black pepper

Bourbon glaze

• 1/3 cup bourbon
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons butter

Directions

1. Pressure-cook. Put the gizzards, bay, garlic and salt in the Instant Pot with water to cover. Cook at high pressure for 20 minutes, then release naturally for 10 minutes. Drain, cool, and slice the gizzards about 1/4 inch thick.
2. Bacon. In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp. Lift it out and keep the fat.
3. Brown. Raise the heat to medium-high and brown the sliced gizzards in the bacon fat. Remove them.
4. Onion and mushrooms. Cook the onion and mushrooms in the same pan until the mushrooms are browned and the onion is soft and golden.
5. Glaze. Take the pan off the heat and pour in the bourbon (bourbon poured into a pan over a flame can flare). Return to medium heat and scrape up the browned bits. Stir in the brown sugar, soy sauce, vinegar and mustard and simmer until syrupy, 2 to 3 minutes.
6. Finish. Return the gizzards and bacon, toss until glazed and hot, then swirl in the butter and season with pepper.

Notes

What this is An original, untested composition — the only one in the Offal set. The gizzard method follows Southern Fried Turkey Gizzards (20 minutes at pressure) and Wild Turkey Gizzards with Bacon, Onions and Mushrooms; the glaze is a standard bourbon pan glaze.

Wild turkey If using wild-turkey gizzards, split them and discard any that hold shot.

The Offal dive on the Food site covers this part in depth.

The photo The photo is a stand-in: gizzards in a glossy sauce, not this recipe, which has not yet been cooked.